


A Shared Victory

by IBoatedHere



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Cold Weather, Dessert, Established Relationship, Fluff, Future Fic, M/M, Providence Rhode Island, Public Display of Affection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-13
Updated: 2017-01-13
Packaged: 2018-09-17 07:06:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9310532
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IBoatedHere/pseuds/IBoatedHere
Summary: Jack huffs a laugh and grabs both their coats off the hook by the door.Bitty grabs his as Jack takes Bitty’s Samwell cap and a beanie for himself. He considers them for a moment then holds the beanie out to his boyfriend.Bitty zips his coat and bypasses it to take the cap and fit it on his head. “I’m fine, Jack.”“You said it was cold out.”“I’ll manage. Plus I like how it looks on you,” he says with a small smile as he breezes past him towards the door and Jack’s stuck there trying to figure out why he still gets a nervous rush every time Bitty compliments him.





	

Bitty clears the plates from the dining room table, stacking them on top of each other so he can carry them in one hand and the empty wine glasses in the other.

It’s just the two of them. Two plates. Two sets of silverware. Two glasses. But that doesn’t stop Jack from being impressed by the ease in which Bitty carries them.

He can just add that to the list.

Jack trails after him and takes a plate from Bitty after he’s rinsed it and puts it in the dishwasher. He takes the second plate, the glasses, silverware, and the wooden spoon that Bitty used to stir the sauce then closes the dishwasher and steps behind him.

He’s up to his elbows in soapy water trying to clean the dirty pot and he sighs when he feels Jack’s hands on his hips and his lips on the crown of his head.

“This is why I like to clean as I go,” Bitty says, brow furrowed as he scrubs at a particularly rough spot. “We could be eating dessert right now.”

Jack bites back the urge to make an innuendo. Instead he hums and wraps his arms around Bitty’s middle. “Let’s go out for dessert.”

Bitty twists his head around and when he speaks his lips brush the hinge of Jack’s jaw. “But I have pie.”

“It’ll keep until tomorrow, won’t it?”

“Well yeah, but.”

“Then let’s go.”

“But it’s late.”

“It’s not that late.”

“You’re usually asleep by now,” Bitty chirps.

“I don’t have to be up early tomorrow.”

“It’s cold out.”

“Bundle up.”

“Jack.”

“Bits.” Jack kisses right behind his ear and he can feel him melt into it. He knows he’s won.

“Fine, let me just finish this.”

Jack reaches into the sudsy water and pulls Bitty’s hands out by his wrists. “Leave it. Let it soak. Let’s go.”

Bitty dries his hands on a dishtowel then tosses it at Jack’s chest. “You just want to leave so you can get back _and then_ go to sleep.”

Jack huffs a laugh and grabs both their coats off the hook by the door.

Bitty grabs his as Jack takes Bitty’s Samwell cap and a beanie for himself. He considers them for a moment then holds the beanie out to his boyfriend.

Bitty zips his coat and bypasses it to take the cap and fit it on his head. “I’m fine, Jack.”

“You said it was cold out.”

“I’ll manage. Plus I like how it looks on you,” he says with a small smile as he breezes past him towards the door and Jack’s stuck there trying to figure out why he still gets a nervous rush every time Bitty compliments him.

When he turns around Bitty has a hand on the door knob and one eyebrow raised. Bitty has him wrapped around his little finger and Jack feels his earlier victory start to slip away from him.

It’s the only time he’s happy to concede.

******

The street is quiet. It’s just the occasional car and the sound of their footsteps as they head down the sidewalk side by side, shoulders bumping.

It’s one of the reasons he chose this apartment in this part of town.

He had looked at others. Ones with more space and better views of the skyline and heated floors but he turned them all down for one with good proximity to the arena, a great kitchen, and sleepy little street out front.

The street lights dance across Bitty’s face as they walk. Jack stares.

Their arms brush against each other and Jack’s pinky grazes the side of Bitty’s hand, once, twice, three times before he presses their hands together palm to palm.

“Oh,” Bitty breathes out as Jack threads their fingers together.

There’s no one around. Not that it would matter. Everyone knows about them. Some people still care in all the wrong ways but it’s not enough to keep Jack up at night. He’s proud of himself and of Bitty and the way they get to do this.

“Thought your hand might be cold,” Jack says with a shrug.

He watches the tips of Bitty’s ears turn red as he turns his head and buries his chin into his scarf to hide the blush that’s spreading across his face.

Jack’s proud that he can do that too.

*****

When they get to the cafe Jack lets go of his hand to get the door and gets stuck outside while a steady stream of young college students pour out.

Bitty’s laughing and shaking his head when he finally gets inside. “You’re too polite, Jack.”

“What was I supposed to do?”

Bitty rolls his eyes and swivels his head around to see if he can spot an open table. It’s more crowded than Jack would have expected but he sees one in the corner, tucked out of the way, and puts a hand on Bitty’s back to guide him towards it.

He unwinds his scarf and tells Jack “surprise me” when he asks what he wants.

The line moves slowly and Jack splits his time between looking up at the menu and looking over at Bittle.

Bitty checks his phone then props his chin in his hands and looks out the window then swings his gaze over to Jack. When he catches Jack looking back at him he pulls a funny face, crossing his eyes and sticking out his tongue and when a giggle bursts it’s way out of Jack’s mouth the woman in front of him turns around to look.

“Sorry,” Jack mumbles. When he looks over at Bitty again he has his hands covering his mouth to keep in his own laugh.

******

Jack gets a slice of dark chocolate salted caramel pie for himself and a slice of lemonade cake for Bitty whose eyes widen when he sees the size of it and all the fluffy frosting sitting on top.

“Thank you, darling,” Bitty hums as he takes the plate and Jack squeezes in next to him.

He sits closer than he needs to so that when Bitty holds out his forkful of cake for him to try he doesn’t even really have to lean in.

It’s light and tangy and the exact opposite of the rich chocolate that Jack has in front of him.

He eats slowly and watches Bitty lick the frosting from the fork in between telling him about what his mama has planned for them when they get down to Georgia.

It’s going to be odd to spend Christmas without snow but it’ll be the first Christmas he’s going to spend with someone he loves as much as he loves Bitty. A boyfriend. It’s more than a fair trade.

Jack pushes his plate away with just a few bites of Oreo cookie crust left on it. He’s full and happy and Bitty pops crust into his mouth and chirps him about not letting good things go to waste.

Jack agrees.

He got it together with Bitty just in time with his father’s help and that nagging feeling deep in his chest telling him he had to do something. He kissed Bitty in his old room while he was sweaty from his run across campus and Bitty still had tears in his eyes and it’s a good story, _fucking epic, brah_ , as Shitty told him but there were so many other moments.

Early morning checking practices at Faber, up on the roof with his jacket draped over Bitty’s shoulders, sitting next to him on the bus after an away game and falling asleep with Bitty’s knee pressed against his own and the muffled sound of Bitty’s music coming from his earbuds.

They’re all good moments, memories that he’ll cherish forever but they could have been great if he had just done something.

Took a half a beat longer to pull his body away from Bitty’s where it was pressed against the boards. 

Wrapped his arm around his shoulder as well as his jacket.

Tapped his finger against his knee to get his attention then tipped his chin down to kiss him.

Any one of those.

Bitty starts to wrap his scarf back around his neck and it hides more and more of the delicate skin of his neck and Jack stops it with a finger crooked between the soft flannel and even softer skin and kisses him on his pulse point. It jumps against his lips when Bitty inhales sharply.

“You were about to cover it up,” Jack says as an explanation, “and it’s a good spot on you. One of my favorites. I didn’t want to waste it.”

Bitty bites his lip and Jack leans in again to kiss his forehead and the tip of his nose and finally his lips, chaste and sweet because he wants to and he knows Bitty wants him to and because he can.

“Do you want hot chocolate to take with us? I can go get in line.”

Bitty nods and his eyes look shiny and just as Jack’s about to slide out of the booth he wraps his fingers around Jack’s elbows. 

“This was worth coming out for, Jack.”

Jack doesn’t know what he means, exactly. Coming out tonight or coming out in general. The pie and the cake or holding hands and sharing kisses in public but Jack nods anyways and kisses his cheek. 

“I know it was, Bits. 


End file.
